Cadillac HERTZ Racing in Imola with weight add

WECHyperCar

Apr 16

Cadillac Racing returns to the venue south of Bologna with its expanded lineup of the #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R driven by Alex Lynn, Norman Nato and Will Stevens and the #38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R driven by Earl Bamber, Sebastien Bourdais and Jenson Button.

Two productive day tests at Imola and IMSA Whelen Cadillac as a good base

Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA spent two productive days turning laps in mixed weather conditions last month at the Imola circuit with the goals of optimizing car setup and assessing details to best navigate the course that combines high-speed straights, tight chicanes and elevation changes.

📷© Luc Warnotte at Lusail. Cadillac V-Series.R #12.

“During testing in Imola last month we experienced some dry and wet conditions which permitted us to keep discovering the car on a new track and different conditions,” Nato said. “Such an iconic track, old-school track with not much runoff, gravel traps, big curbs.” Added Bamber, who this past weekend drove the #31 Whelen Cadillac V-Series.R to fourth place in the 100-minute IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship street race in Long Beach, California: “We were able to do this test and understand and answer some questions from 2024 there. The guys at Action Express have also given us some ideas and directions, so all of that has really helped to accumulate to a good base that I think we've got going towards Imola.”

Strong pace in Qatar but “track incident”

Both Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.Rs qualified in the top five for the season-opening 10-hour race in Qatar on February 28 after showing strong pace in the two-day Prologue. The #38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R led six laps early in the race before falling back because of an on-track incident. The #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R recovered from the same incident to finish eighth.

The new BoP is adding some weight to the Cadillac V-Series.R prior to the Imola round.

What they're saying

#12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R

Alex Lynn: “During the test, I got some dry running in, got some wet running in, which is helpful for both the driver and team. The test was positive; we learned a lot. I think it’s a circuit that we can definitely improve on from last year, and I’m quite confident we have improved a lot overall since then. This is now the run-in to Le Mans with all the European races, which is always an exciting time in the World Endurance Championship. I’m really excited for Imola and just to get back racing.”

Norman Nato: “During testing in Imola last month we experienced some dry and wet conditions which permitted us to keep discovering the car on a new track and different conditions. Such an iconic track, old-school track with not much runoff, gravel traps, big curbs. Traffic management is always tricky there. Many fans around throughout the weekend, and I’m looking forward to race in Imola for the first time with the Cadillac V-Series.R. Still early process in the development of the new association Cadillac-JOTA. We are making good progress every time we hit the track. We are all working hard as a team. We keep pushing to reach our target and get ready for Le Mans in June.”

Will Stevens: “We’re starting off the year with two completely different circuits and conditions. Imola is much more bumpy and you got to use curbs, so it has very different characteristics. Doing a test there was very important for us. We got some dry and some wet running, so we experienced all different conditions. From there, we’ve had a few weeks to take all the information in, make sure we make good decisions to come back as best prepared we can for the race weekend.”

#38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R

Earl Bamber: “We had a good test at Imola. It was pretty constructive though one of the days was impacted by weather, but that was the same for everyone. We were able to do this test and understand and answer some questions from 2024 there. The guys at Action Express have also given us some ideas and directions, so all of that has really helped to accumulate to a good base that I think we've got going towards Imola.”

Sebastien Bourdais: “Overall, a very different challenge. There were some nice gains during the test. The car was a lot more compliant, predictable and had much better pace, so it’s all encouraging. I’m looking forward to getting behind the wheel and see what we can do on the heels of a pretty strong first weekend that didn’t end up how we wanted. We’ll keep digging and see what we can get.”

Jenson Button: “Test days are always beneficial, especially because we’re limited in the WEC. We were blessed with wet and dry weather, which will be beneficial as the weather in San Marino can be mixed in April. We were able to learn a lot with the Cadillac V-Series.R and I continue to learn about the car and get comfortable. We showed good pace in Qatar, and I think we’ll continue to show improvement at Imola and challenge for the podium.” Source: Cadillac Racing

Imola Schedule

FRIDAY, APRIL 18